Here comes "LAPD Patrol Officer West," a tiny, sinewy action figure doll dressed just like a Los Angeles police officer right down to his tiny die-cast metal gun, handcuffs, pepper spray and black boots -- all for $39.95 and available in time for Christmas.

The Los Angeles Police Protective League (LAPPL), a union representing about 9,000 Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officers, has begun selling the dolls, dressed in authentic LAPD uniforms, via the department's Web site (www.lapd.com) in order to raise the profile of law enforcement officers in the community, a spokesman said.

"These action figures are not only great gifts for law enforcement officers and children, but they are also a great way to show pride in the law enforcement heroes that are protecting our nation right now," said LAPPL President Mitzi Grasso.

"The extensive planning and design that went into these figures to make sure that they are realistic representations of police officers makes them quality gifts," Grasso added.

Standing one-foot (.34 meters) tall, the dolls are the first in a series of "LAPD Elite Force Action Figures" that will come complete with 1/6-scale weapons and accessories. Also in time for the 2001 holiday season, the LAPPL has introduced a female companion for West, "Patrol Officer Sommers."

New officer dolls will follow each quarter, the union said in a statement, including officers assigned to K9 dog units, SWAT teams, narcotics, air support, horse-mounted patrol, bicycle detail, riot control and motorcycle patrol.

The dolls follow a massive recruiting campaign launched last summer by the scandal-plagued force, involving radio spots, print ads, theater and bus shelter promos and 50 billboards. The campaign aims at attracting more recruits by spotlighting the good, caring actions of the department's officers.

Recruitment and retention of qualified personnel has been a major problem for the department since the city's Rampart station corruption scandal broke in September 1999. In that scandal, an officer who was accused of stealing cocaine from an evidence locker began detailing pervasive corruption at the Rampart station.

More than 100 criminal convictions have been recorded in the scandal, which is expected to cost the city hundreds of millions of dollars in legal and settlement costs.

The LAPD currently has fewer than the 9,000 officers required to patrol the nation's second-largest city, and about 800 below its level of two years ago.

Recent figures show that the department needs to recruit between 16,000 and 27,000 applicants just to hire the 1,000 extra officers it needs to meet city standards because applicants face an extensive screening process.

12/07/01: A.T. MAILORDER ACCEPTS PayPal

Many of you have contacted us encouraging us to accept PayPal on our website.
Well, now we have enabled that.

Just add to the shopping cart whatever you want, and when it comes time for Check
Out, select PayPal and it takes you over to the PayPal website where you can
easily and quickly complete the transaction. Remember, it costs you nothing when
you pay via PayPal (we pay the transaction cost).

This was lifted from the American Firearms website (http://www.amfire.com) :

Accokeek, MD (October 9, 2001) - Beretta U.S.A. is proud to introduce the limited edition 92F, 9 mm United We Stand Pistol, which features a laser etched gold American Flag and the words "United We Stand" on the slide. Production will be limited to 2001 units. In addition, each United We Stand Pistol will be laser etched with "1 of 2001" on the slide.

Beretta U.S.A. General Manager Steve Parsick announced that Beretta will make a donation from the proceeds of the United We Stand Pistol to the NY City Police Foundation and Survivor's Fund of the National Capital Region.

"The tragic events of September 11, 2001 have left many of our fellow-Americans devastated and in need of help," said Mr. Parsick. "We are proud to have created the United We Stand Pistol as a way to assist those who have been so effected by the horrific events of September 11th. The United We Stand Pistol was created as a testament to the American sprit, which will remain unbroken during this time of national tragedy."

Like all 92 Series pistols, The United We Stand Pistol features chrome lined bore, external hammer, integral front sight, and reversible magazine release. As part of the 92 Series of pistols, the United We Stand Pistol joins a class of pistols that have enjoyed unrivaled success by a multi-national roster of defense and law enforcement organizations.

Beretta, the world's oldest firearms manufacturer, is celebrating its
475th anniversary in 2001. The company produces and markets, worldwide, a complete line of firearms, clothing and accessories, including: field and premium grade sporting shotguns and rifles; a full range of pistols and military arms; knives; and an exclusive line of hunting and sports leisure
clothing.

To mark its 475th anniversary, Beretta is celebrating the release of the book, "The World of Beretta, An International Legend," which was written by R.L. "Larry" Wilson and is now on sale. A Beretta exhibit is currently underway at the National Firearms Museum in Fairfax, Virginia, where about 100 historical firearms will be on display to the end of the year.

For more information about Beretta and its complete line, visit its website at www.berettausa.com

12/06/01: PACHINKO's EURO MENAGERIE OF LIGHTS, BOURBON & BJORK

PACHINKO
just returned from their European tour. Here is a letter that Brech wrote to a friend that he said we could put up on our website.

wow, catherine,

what a crazy time we're having i prague... last night we drove 10 1/2 hours
through the austrian alps to find ourselves in prague, at the end of our shorter
and shorter tour(tho' tonite we may play a gig here)

we decided to blow the last of our profit at a glitzy czech night club, the
drinks actually cost more than a dollar, so we knew it was nice. hard to
believe, but bjork's drummer was there, a tall man, who much like us, liked to
drink hard and party harder. i told him that i knew the old drummer from the
sugarcubes, siggi baldurson, he said that he too knew him, that they were old
friends. yessirreebob, that was our in.

i told him that all tour i had been
telling people that i once took a shower with bjork, and that it was crazy to run
into her drummer. he laughed and made a phone call and within 15 minutes bjork
arrived, i guess she was at a nicer club down the street. he had told her of my
tall tale, she thought it was hilarious and we set to drinkin', goddamn can that
girl drink, and dance, too.

after about 20 beam and cokes(which she wouldn't even
let me pay for) i got her out on the dance floor to do her thing, the world was a
spinning menagerie of lights, bourbon, and bjork. the next part i think i blacked
out, but somehow all of us ended up back at bjork's hotel, it doesn't need to be
said, but it was swank. the stereo in that joint was nicer than the clubs',
things got bumpin'.

bjork kept bringing up the story about the "shower incident",
i think it might have been the bravery of the beam, but i told her we might as
well go take one. she said that her husband was in the other room,.... damn,
..shot down, .. but when she saw my heart drop, she reassured me that he wasn't
a jealous man, BAMM!!, i thought to myself. i practically had my pants around my
ankles, sprinting for the bathroom, once again, it was swank.

bjork followed me
into the shower(imagine what king hussein might shower in), but she wouldn't take
off her bejewelled panties, i kept ribbing her and ribbing her about it and
finally she gave in, it turns out that she had shaven her pubic hair into a
letter, (from the looks of it one that doesn't exist in the english language)the
first letter of her husband's name, a husband which happened to be the the
drummer, .... i guess he isn't a jealous man.

home soon,

love, ........B

11/30/01: ANNIVERSARY OF FRANKENCHRIST
Today is the 16th anniversary of the release of Frankenchrist by the Dead Kennedys. More controversial than the album itself was the packaging: The Shriners filed suit regarding the cover (pictured were some of the ridiculous little cars they drive); and a poster included in the album was later the basis of obscenity charges against Jello Biafra and Alternative Tentacles.

11/28/01: NEW WAR TRADING CARDS

(from TOPPS website:)

A NEW SERIES DOCUMENTING AMERICA'S GREATEST CHALLENGE

This high-gloss 90-card set contains biographical information on the civilian and military leaders entrusted to guide us through this fight, statistical data and photos of military hardware.
Kids need to understand that the President (and his team) will keep them safe and that evil-doers will be punished. Our cards deliver the details in a medium with which they are familiar and comfortable.
Each pack contains 7 premium quality trading cards and 1 sticker featuring flags and patriotic designs.

11/28/01: KRIST NOVOSELIC LAUNCHES Inclusive Democracy?WEBSITE

Dear Fellow Lovers of Liberty & Democracy,

I am proud to announce a new web site I have created.

It is called Inclusive Democracy? http://www.inclusivedemocracy.com >

It is dedicated to meaningful electoral reform.

Periodically, I will be posting my thoughts on improving our democracy,
along with links on electoral reform.

The premiere issue features my address to the Spitfire Forum.

Thanks,

Krist Novoselic

11/28/01: BRANDON CRUZ's LETTER UP ON WEBSITE AGAIN FOR SOME REASON

About 2months ago we posted a letter that character actor Brandon Cruz sent to Jello Biafra. East Bay Ray complained to us that Brandon had received nasty emails due to us posting that letter, which contained his email address. One person sent Brandon an email threatening violence which wasn't cool, so we complied with Ray's pleading to remove the letter. However, every day people are emailing us wanting to get a copy of the letter. So, here it is. Without his email address. Remember kids, violence isn't cool.

Date : September 24, 2001
Subject: dear jello

jello,
it saddens me to see you stoop to calling me a scab. i have always
respected what the dead kennedy's did, and when i was asked to sing a
few songs with them, not at a "reunion" but at a record release party, i
felt honored to be able to do it. sure, i wish the whole lawsuit had
never happened, and i have heard both sides of the story. i feel that
it's the music, not anything else, that matters. best buy, as far as i
know, has nothing to do with this party, which is sold out, by the way,
and as far as the levi's thing, well, you know the truth on that. i wish
you were singing. the truth is i loved the dead kennedy's, still do, and
i am doing this so the kids who never even had the chance to see or hear
the band and its music will have a chance to do so. the internet is
alive with attacks on me, calling me the new jello, and the sammy hagar
of punk. i am neither. i am a lucky fan who gets to hold the mic when
those amazing songs are played. i know you are doing what you feel is
right, and so are the other guys. i know all of you. i opened for you
guys in 1981-1984 several times with dr. know, who i still sing for. as
far as the fighting and the lawsuit, i have no opinion. that is between
your lawyers. i'm just a fan. calling me a scab may help you feel
better, so it's cool with me. next time though, call me and tell me
personally before you run your mouth in public.
brandon cruz
Dr. Know

11/27/01: WTO TOILET SUMMIT ANNOUNCED TOILET SUMMIT

(Singapore-AP) -- Jack Sim wants to break the
silence on the topic of toilets. He's the founder of
the 17-nation World Toilet Organization. The inaugural
W-T-O summit took place recently in Singapore. And the
members have declared every November 19th from now on
World Toilet Day. Sim says the day will be used to
promote awareness of the need for good toilets. The
W-T-O has released nine aims, including improving the
quality of toilet environments and promoting better
toilets for all people on earth. Korea will host the
next summit. Many industry members say that country
has the best but most expensive toilets.

11/22/01: WHY DOC DART (Crucifucks) GETS HATE CALLS AFTER 9/11

It didn't take long for Doc Corbin Dart to publicly express his ideas following the Sept. 11 attacks. Since that day he's posted signs on the front of his Okemos house such as : "U.S. terror in Iraq makes Sept. 11th a tiny mirror image," and "U.S. Troops terrorize as cowards from the skies. They should be in body bags."

The reaction has been just as quick. He's faced everything from rocks thrown at his window to visits from the State Police, who, he said, walked around the perimeter of his property taking pictures.
All along, Dart said he has also received menacing phone calls.
"The threats at first were rather veiled, but starting last Wednesday or maybe the week before that, the veils came off. They've been completely death threats," her said.

One of the signs on Dart's house lists a phone number, which is how he's received most of his threats. Tapes recorded on his answering machine contain messages such as:
"I'll brace myself for a long, long time...but in the end I'm going to kill all of you...all of you dead."
"I will kill you if I get the chance."

Dart said that because of his opposition to the actions of the United States in Afghanistan, many people assume he's Arabic. One caller left the message: "Here's an idea-how about you camel jockeys go back to your goddamn country, leave us alone and pray to your fake God."

"Everything that I'm doing has been under the heading of the Animal Liberation Front, because human beings are animals and they won't admit it," Dart said. "There's not much that separates us from animals except that they're awake and alert and most humans are asleep."

To Dart, it is a moral imperative to act out against suffering in the world. He cites the assassination of John Lennon as a turning point. "That's kind of when it started for me. That was the final straw."

After multiple arrests during the mid-1980s in the name of various causes, Dart said he sank into a severe depression that lasted for years. About three years ago, he said his depression lifted and he began to work on what he calls "mystical trances," which he said is the antithesis of meditation. It is through his work with trances that led Dart to leave this message for anyone who calls the phone number posted on the front of his house:
"His name is the number 26...He is the Messiah...He has arrived at the mountaintop...And no one on earth can bring him down."
"Someone with divine authority had to step in and stop the destruction of nature, and the out of control propagation of the human species," he said. And Dart believes he is that authority.
"But it's hard for people to understand that because I don't look the part."
He said that there is a purpose to the expression of his claims, and that the signs are meant to "call attention to the terrorism initiated by the United States."

"It's not a local project, and it won't be finished until I've had my own impact on foreign policy," Dart said. That impact, according to Dart, would include a realignment of the United Nations so that more powerful countries don't have stronger influence. Also, he feels that the United Nations should go in between the Palestinians and Israelis to stop the violence there and begin negotiations until a fair settlement is reached, "for the Palestinians in particular."
But the biggest impact for Dart would be to help convince the United States to "pull all of its tentacles out of the Middle East, and perhaps make reparations to the Iraqi people and others," he said.

In order to help the infamous punk band Crass repay the debts that
they incurrred in the purchasing of the house they've lived in for
over thirty years and utilize as a local community center, a bunch of
artists, music makers, etc have donated works of art and an auction
begins next week on eBay.

Participants include: Cynthia Connolly, Pat
Graham, Maya Hayuk, Tortoise, David Tibet (Current 93), Steven
Stapleton (Nurse With Wound), Alec Mackaye, Sean Meadows, Modest
Mouse, Winston Smith, Savage Pencil, V. Vale, Jem Cohen, Glen
Friedman, and a lot more. Read on for more info about this amazing
house and its efforts to offer an alternate way of living in the 21st
century.

ONLINE AUCTION INFORMATION

All the pieces exhibited and offered for sale have been donated by
the contributors. The auction will take place from 21st November to
1st December on ebay.co.uk. All of the work will be displayed here at
the roving eye gallery and there will be direct links to the auctions
on ebay if you want to make a bid.

What was the most common response heard to
the devastation that struck New York's Twin Towers
and the Pentagon on 11 September, 2001?
For tens, perhaps hundreds, of thousands of people,
especially those in their 50s or older, the carnage and
destruction of the aerial attack of 11 September brought
to mind the flying squadrons of Imperial Japan when
waves of them struck Pearl Harbor on 7 December, 1941.
Over 2,300 Americans perished during that attack.
As is often the case, people are often right.
While there were obviously dissimilarities (Japan
was a nation, not an organization) the psychological
impact was indeed similar: shock, fear, outrage, and
a massive military and social response.

After the Pearl Harbor attack, the U.S. declared war
by the next day -- December 8th.
It also embarked on an internal war of sorts, against
Americans of Japanese descent. Within days of the
bombing of Pearl Harbor, the media agitated against
Japanese-Americans, as did the Los Angeles Times,
which wrote:
"A viper is nonetheless a viper wherever the egg
is hatched - so a Japanese American, born of
Japanese parents - grows up to be a Japanese,
not an American."
Racist editorials such as this paved the way for
people like U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt to
issue Executive Order 9066, which removed tens
of thousands of Japanese-Americans from the
West Coast, and placing over 120,000 Japanese
men, women, and children in concentration camps,
over 60% of whom were American citizens.

While there are far more Arab-Americans in the
U.S. then there were Japanese-Americans in the
U.S. in the 1940s, over 1,000 Arab-Americans are
being held in secret, unlimited detention, with no
meaningful access to lawyers. The U.S. Justice
Dept. recently announced that it will monitor
telephone conversations between detainees
and lawyers.

So, that (internment) hasn't happened -- yet.
At the time of World War II, the U.S. government
announced it was fighting totalitarianism, and
demanded hemispheric unity. As a result, some
nations, like Peru, waged virtual war against their
Japanese citizens. The Peruvian government
froze and confiscated Japanese assets, shut
down Japanese businesses and schools, and
black-listed the entire Japanese community.
Under U.S. pressure, the government forced
some of its Japanese citizens to flee back to
Japan; 1771 others were deported to the U.S.,
where they were confined to ugly, dusty
concentration camps, in Texas. *These were
Spanish-speaking Peruvian citizens*, whose
only offenses were having Japanese ancestry!

Can what happened in the 1940s happen
now?
No? Why not?
What if another bombing were to occur?
Who can say?

"All those who seek to destroy the liberties of a democratic nation
ought to know that war is the surest and the shortest means to accomplish it"
-Alexis de Tocqueville

09/17/01: Tamim Ansary on the Attacks

BY: Tamim Ansary

(Note: this was originally posted listing him as a Professor at Berkeley. We have just heard that is not a Professor at Berkeley, but someone with a lot of insight.)

I've been hearing a lot of talk about "bombing Afghanistan back to the Stone
Age." Ronn Owens, on KGO Talk Radio today, allowed that this would mean
killing innocent people, people who had nothing to do with this atrocity, but
"we're at war, we have to accept collateral damage. What else can we do?"
Minutes later I heard some TV pundit discussing whether we "have the belly to
do what must be done."

And I thought about the issues being raised especially hard because I am from
Afghanistan, and even though I've lived here for 35 years I've never lost
track of what's going on there. So I want to tell anyone who will listen how
it all looks from where I'm standing.

I speak as one who hates the Taliban and Osama Bin Laden. There is no doubt
in my mind that these people were responsible for the atrocity in New York. I
agree that something must be done about those monsters.

But the Taliban and Ben Laden are not Afghanistan. They're not even the
government of Afghanistan. The Taliban are a cult of ignorant psychotics who
took over Afghanistan in 1997. Bin Laden is a political criminal with a plan.
When you think Taliban, think Nazis. When you think Bin Laden, think
Hitler. And when you think "the people of Afghanistan" think "the Jews in the
concentration camps."

It's not only that the Afghan people had nothing to do with this atrocity.
They were the first victims of the perpetrators. They would exult if someone
would come in there, take out the Taliban and clear out the rats nest of
international thugs holed up in their country.

A few years ago, the United Nations estimated that there are 500,000 disabled
orphans in Afghanistan--a country with no economy, no food.

There are millions of widows. And the Taliban has been burying these widows
alive in mass graves. The soil is littered with land mines, the farms were
all destroyed by the Soviets. These are a few of the reasons why the Afghan
people have not overthrown the Taliban.

We come now to the question of bombing Afghanistan back to the Stone Age.
Trouble is, that's been done. The Soviets took care of it already.

Make the Afghans suffer? They're already suffering. Level their houses? Done.
Turn their schools into piles of rubble? Done. Eradicate their hospitals?
Done. Destroy their infrastructure? Cut them off from medicine and health
care? Too late. Someone already did all that.

New bombs would only stir the rubble of earlier bombs. Would they at least
get the Taliban? Not likely. In today's Afghanistan, only the Taliban eat,
only they have the means to move around. They'd slip away and hide. Maybe the
bombs would get some of those disabled orphans, they don't move too fast,
they don't even have wheelchairs.

But flying over Kabul and dropping bombs wouldn't really be a strike against
the criminals who did this horrific thing. Actually it would only be making
common cause with the Taliban--by raping once again the people they've been
raping all this time.

So what else is there? What can be done, then? Let me now speak with true
fear and trembling. The only way to get Bin Laden is to go in there with
ground troops. When people speak of "having the belly to do what needs to be
done" they're thinking in terms of having the belly to kill as many as
needed. Having the belly to overcome any moral qualms about killing innocent
people. Let's pull our heads out of the sand.

What's actually on the table is Americans dying. And not just because some
Americans would die fighting their way through Afghanistan to Bin Laden's
hideout. It's much bigger than that folks. Because to get any troops to
Afghanistan, we'd have to go through Pakistan.

Would they let us? Not likely. The conquest of Pakistan would have to be
first.

Will other Muslim nations just stand by? You see where I'm going. We're
flirting with a world war between Islam and the West.

And guess what: that's Bin Laden's program. That's exactly what he wants.
That's why he did this. Read his speeches and statements. It's all right
there. He really believes Islam would beat the west.

It might seem ridiculous, but he figures if he can polarize the world into
Islam and the West, he's got a billion soldiers. If the west wreaks a
holocaust in those lands, that's a billion people with nothing left to lose,
that's even better from Bin Laden's point of view. He's probably wrong, in
the end the west would win, whatever that would mean, but the war would last
for years and millions would die, not just theirs but ours. Who has the belly
for that? Bin Laden does. Anyone else?

END

09/14/01: MORE FROM MOORE on the ATTACKS

9/13/01

Across America Tonight ...

Dear Friends,

I am on the road tonight, the only way to get out of L.A. and back home to
our daughter and our friends in New York City. Oddly enough, I have never
driven across this vast country. My wife and I have now stopped in
Flagstaff for a few hours sleep before moving on.

The sorrow and anger builds across America. Talk radio tonight was filled
with calls for carpet-bombing every Arab country. Many want revenge, blood.
But a surprising number of people have called for us to not add to the
killing of more innocent humans. The rest stops and the convenience stores
along the way were filled with quiet, solemn people, many of whom, like us,
can get home no other way than by this four-day trip.

Our daughter is fine, mostly frightened by my desire to fly home to her
rather than drive. Once again, I was outvoted 2 to 1. This is nothing new.

We have learned of more people we know who have lost their lives. Bill
Weems, who worked as a line producer for us this year, was on the flight
from Boston that crashed into the World Trade Center. He was such a sweet
and decent soul. Such senseless madness.

The children of New York who are orphaned tonight ... what do we say or do?
I will do my part -- anything, something -- as soon as I get to New York.
But it will never be enough.

The firefighters of New York: they are on every other block, every day, and
they are your best neighbors. Sitting out on the sidewalks in front of the
fire stations, a good word and a kind smile to all who pass ... now, 350+
of them gone, having risked their lives to save the victims of a carnage
they soon became part of.

A good friend from Flint is a clerical worker at the Pentagon. I have heard
no word about her condition. I have tried contacting her family to no
avail. Her son, Malcolm, worked on our show. I cannot find him. I keep
getting tears in my eyes. Once she gave me a tour of the Pentagon, took me
everywhere, and got such a kick out of taking me around this building I
used to march on. Will our mutual friends who know Barbara, and know how
she is, please write me? Please.

The man who occupies the White House cried today. Good. Keep crying, Mr.
Bush. The more you cry, the less you will go to that dark side in all
humans where anger rages to a point where we want to blindly kill. Your
dad's and Reagan's old cronies -- Eagleberger, Baker, Schultz -- are all
calling for you to bomb first and ask questions later. You must NOT do
this. If only because you do not want to stoop to these mass murderers'
level. Yes, find out who did it. Yes, see that they NEVER do it again.

But GET A GRIP, man. "Declare war?" War against whom? One guy in the desert
whom we can never seem to find? Are our leaders telling us that the most
powerful country on earth cannot dispose of one sick evil f---wad of a guy?
Because if that is what you are telling us, then we are truly screwed. If
you are unable to take out this lone ZZ Top wannabe, what on earth would
you do for us if we were attacked by a nation of millions? For chrissakes,
call the Israelis and have them do that thing they do when they want to get
their man! We pay them enough billions each year, I am SURE they would be
happy to accommodate your request.

But I beg you, Mr. Bush, stay with the tears. Go today to comfort the
wounded of New York. Tell the mayor, a guy most of us have not liked, that
he is doing an incredible job, keeping the spirits of everyone up as high
as they can be at this moment. Being there for a city I believe he loves,
his own cancer still with him, he goes beyond the call of duty.

But do not declare war and massacre more innocents. After bin Laden's
previous act of terror, our last elected president went and bombed what he
said was "bin Laden's camp" in Afghanistan -- but instead just killed
civilians. Then he bombed a factory in the Sudan, saying it was "making
chemical weapons." It turned out to be making aspirin. Innocent people
murdered by our Air Force.

Back in May, you gave the Taliban in Afghanistan $48 million dollars of our
tax money. No free nation on earth would give them a cent, but you gave
them a gift of $48 million because they said they had "banned all drugs."

Because your drug war was more important than the actual war the Taliban
had inflicted on its own people, you helped to fund the regime who had
given refuge to the very man you now say is responsible for killing my
friend on that plane and for killing the friends of families of thousands
and thousands of people. How dare you talk about more killing now! Shame!
Shame! Shame! Explain your actions in support of the Taliban! Tell us why
your father and his partner Mr. Reagan trained Mr. bin Laden in how to be a
terrorist!

Am I angry? You bet I am. I am an American citizen, and my leaders have
taken my money to fund mass murder. And now my friends have paid the price
with their lives.

Keep crying, Mr. Bush. Keep running to Omaha or wherever it is you go while
others die, just as you ran during Vietnam while claiming to be "on duty"
in the Air National Guard. Nine boys from my high school died in that
miserable war. And now you are asking for "unity" so you can start another
one? Do not insult me or my country like this!

Yes, I, too, will be in church at noon today, on this national day of
mourning. I will pray for you, and us, and the children of New York, and
the children of this sad and ugly world ...

Yours,

Michael Moore

mmlfint@aol.com

www.michaelmoore.com

09/13/01: CHOMSKY'S INITIAL RESPONSE TO TERRORIST ATTACKS

Today's attacks were major atrocities. In terms of number of victims
they do not reach the level of many others, for example, Clinton's
bombing of the Sudan with no credible pretext, destroying half its
pharmaceutical supplies and probably killing tens of thousands of people
(no one knows, because the US blocked an inquiry at the UN and no one
cares to pursue it). Not to speak of much worse cases, which easily come
to mind. But that this was a horrendous crime is not in doubt. The
primary victims, as usual, were working people: janitors, secretaries,
firemen, etc. It is likely to prove to be a crushing blow to
Palestinians and other poor and oppressed people. It is also likely to
lead to harsh security controls, with many possible ramifications for
undermining civil liberties and internal freedom.

The events reveal, dramatically, the foolishness of ideas about "missile
defense." As has been obvious all along, and pointed out repeatedly by
strategic analysts, if anyone wants to cause immense damage in the US,
including weapons of mass destruction, they are highly unlikely to
launch a missile attack, thus guaranteeing their immediate destruction.
There are innumerable easier ways that are basically unstoppable. But
today's events will, nonetheless, be used to increase the pressure to
develop these systems and put them into place.

"Defense" is a thin cover
for plans for militarization of space, and with good PR, even the
flimsiest arguments will carry some weight among a frightened public.
In short, the crime is a gift to the hard jingoist right, those who hope
to use force to control their domains. That is even putting aside the
likely US actions, and what they will trigger -- possibly more attacks
like this one, or worse. The prospects ahead are even more ominous than
they appeared to be before the latest atrocities.